Ides of a Feather: Recovery
by Weaselandcherry
Summary: They did what was expected of them. They learned to go through the motions- that was until they snapped and could no longer bend. 'Chichiue... how do you know if you've made a right decision'/'You don't… You wait for the outcome then hope and pray you've made the right one.'
1. Chapter 1

To all of my followers: Please don't judge me, haha. I love you- I promise.

Disclaimer for the story: I most definitely do not own Naruto. If I did, the anime would _not_ have all those darn fillers when they could've had the ending done already with two more episodes.

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And he was suddenly there in their clutches. It was an unexpected capture that left everyone in vicinity in awe and bewilderment and oddly enough- wary. They had been looking for him for four years when he first defected, another three years of hunting, and the following trying to avoid the man whenever his ominous presence welcomed their eyes.

His figure and aura spoke intangible volumes whenever one happened to unluckily stumble across the shinobi. His features flawless, as to one would never have guessed he would be the face of murder and misery. The figure that then had stood a haughty six foot four caused his enemies to cower in fear and trepidation. Those glittering almond shaped eyes tended to gravitate wondering eyes of his opponents, much to his and their chagrin. His thin, pale lips or billowing locks seemed to always be the focus of those who dared to stand across from him.

He was an infamous and renowned ninja from the Village of the Leaf whom no one tried to fight for the place at the top that he seemed to almost waltz up to without as much as a whisper or bead of sweat. It was in his blood after all. He was an Uchiha.

That's why, as all fourteen Leaf shinobi gathered around the hollow figure, they looked up him with perplexity and hostility. There was no angelic, God-like solider in their eyes, no great threat upon further inspection, no breathtaking, knee shaking aura radiating off his crestfallen shadow, no Uchiha- not anymore.

All that laid was a broken shell of a man that no one seemed to know what to do with. If it weren't as serious as it seemed some might have called it awkward even.

The meeting between the two sides happened due to pure accidental rookie mistakes that would surely cause the current Hokage frown in disappointment and displeasure.

The team of special jonin were only supposed to circle the border base three times that night. Instead the whole team concluded it would be wise to circle back one more time.

During this time, a familiar team of four that oozed with nostalgia was beginning to cross back into home territory after a grueling, week long mission that they grudgingly decided to take up when they had felt spontaneous the week prior to. It turned out to be more of a hassle than they had planned on, which seemed to be a reoccurring trend for Konoha ninja.

As the boarder group trailed back, they left an opening for a well-known, blacklisted rogue to slip through unintentionally.

It wasn't his motive to be sneaky or sly about his arrival to the Land of Fire. He was on autopilot and this is where his feet had led him. With no questions asked or even a pause in his direction, he continued, his dulled sense not picking up the fully equip team coming northwest. They were bound to clash.

The man hadn't the faintest idea as to what was happening before he was surrounded by a mass of red and purple, a pale young boy, and an aging man of grey. He just stood, his arms and hand laying limp by his side, the wind lifting his soft locks gently as a result of the breeze. He only allowed the smallest of shivers.

The foursome were posing, a range of attack and defense positions ready in case their foe decided a sudden, rash movement. Though, he had yet to move.

It was in that moment that the rebellious patrolling group rounded into the clearing with shock registering on each and every one of their faces. The group's demeanor quickly changed to one of opposition and rage. As they hollered out to the passive man they sprung to attack, the other group clearly taken aback from their abrasive actions.

A hand from their captain was all it took to keep them from joining.

The older man was the first to notice. It was a one sided battle. His lone visible eye gave a sudden pang at the horrific scene and widened as quickly as he shouted for the others to halt their attacks. His panic increased as he realized they paid no mind to him and his words. He felt a mass of chakra signatures racing towards their direction with speed. He calculated they'd make it in less than a minute. He quickly needed to get things under control.

The almost, but not quite, middle aged man quickly flashed into thin air and stopped the incoming fist and kunai with his own hand and weapon. The shinobi's dog that were quickly summoned restrained the other two members of the squad, one of which was almost done completing his chain of hand signs. The rest of his pack were on alert for orders, surrounding the clearing.

The male and two females on the sideline froze at one of their former sensei's proactive protectiveness.

Two other teams of three swiftly landed on all sides of the fifteen meter radius, causing the dogs to tense up with caution.

One of the team leaders from the recently added groups decided to finally speak up in question.

"Hey! What's going…" His eyes rounded with shock and hint of fear laid hidden beneath his pools of blue. He tried not to stare for too long. His face hardened.  
Kakashi brought down his hands, pocketing his kunai, and motioned for his canines to stand down for now.

He walked a bit in front of the man, who all but laid on the cold earth, blocking the other man's view of the rogue's battered figure.

"Hatake-san," He addressed again,"what's the situation?" The man asked with sudden hardness in his voice that almost made a silver eyebrow stand up.

"Nothing I can't handle here."

"You're attacking your own comrades and not Uchiha Itachi? Seems to me as if this situation isn't _handled_ at all." He narrowed his eyes, his fingers flexing out of reflex.

The retired Anbu made a displeased face behind his mask of nonchalance.

"These comrades of ours were engaged in a one sided fight against an unarmed man, and I decided it was enough. I'd say I handled it." A cold sharpness in his voice caused shivers to run down the spines of those who heard him.

The captain scoffed, seemingly finding the man's statement ridiculous.

"Unarmed? He's an Uchiha. There's no such thing as a defenseless Uchiha, especially an Uchiha Itachi." By this time, the shorter man had his arms crossed across his chest with a sardonic twisted frown making its way onto his scarred face.

There was long pause then Kakashi simply brushed off the ignorant man's words as if they weren't important themselves and turned a head looking in the direction of his team.

"We'll be escorting the Uchiha to Konohagakure-"

"I don't think so." A pale grey, border lining brown hue turned slowly to meet a defiant and dull blue that lacked the luster he normally saw when he looked into a much brighter and less cocky pair of cerulean blue. "My team and I will be handling him over to the hunter nin that pass through here at six every evening."

"I think it's best to get a move on so everyone can do their jobs." His eye crinkled falsely. "Besides, I'm sure Hokage-sama would be fairly displeased if he were to hear about an upstanding officer, such as yourself, engaging in such crude and indecent actions, hm?" His smile was now on the borderline of 'I'm at my breaking point leave me alone' and 'you don't want to know what I can do to you if you don't let me get what I want' look that Sai has only seen mixed together in the strangest of circumstances- this now one of them. He tilted his head in fascination.

A fine line, and tightening of the other man's jaw was the only response they got in return before he motioned for the two teams he brought to leave.

The other four who remained on guard in front of the S-class nin looked about ready to sneak off alongside the two squads. Kakashi clicked his tongue.

"Not so fast you guys." His body turned a full three-sixty, taking in the appearance of everyone, flawlessly pinpointing the supposed leader.

"You," he addressed causing said male to stiffen in response, "what's your name and district?"

With a scowl and boiling stare, he reluctantly gave up the information and motioned for his team to retreat back to base. In the blink of an eye they were all gone except for the captain. He left his parting words.

"You defend and have pity for a beast who didn't even blink in the face of innocents. I'm revolted to even represent the same name as you."

The four of them stood in silence until Hatake made a clearing of his throat and pivoted on a foot to inspect the pitiful Uchiha. He wasn't moving.

He squinted his eyes. With long strides he was bent down and by the man's side in no time.

"Ino." he called. The blond jolted her head upon being requested for. With one look she knew what he wanted her to do.

Minutes later Itachi's wounds were clotted, cleaned, and covered, the dressings requiring the senior of the group's expertise, for the genius was slack and not functioning properly in her arms. She placed trained fingers above the pulse racing under his neck.

"His heartbeat is a bit erratic. It'd be best to make it to Konoha as fast as possible."

The Copycat gave a firm nod of his head and turned to look the other two in the eye as Ino did some final treatments.

"I will go ahead. In my absence." He gave a look to Sai. "Sai."

"Got it." The pale man gave a curt nod.

Bending down to the Uchiha's side and placed a gentle hand on the man's chest.

He looked down at his face- smooth and tanned from years outdoors and on the run. He looked his age, and Kakashi couldn't help but wonder what was going on with the twenty eight year old.

Ino finally stood and stepped back.

By the time Tenten had closed her eyes to blink and then had opened them, the two men were gone. A swirl of dead leaves stood in their disappearance. A gust of wind caused them to float and dance in the air, her eyes couldn't help but follow one in particular as it swayed in melody with the others.

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Hi, guys. Thanks for reading this. I've always wanted to get back into the Naru-verse for a while but could never string enough ideas together. I was inspired by a certain writer (not gonna name any names here) after reading her story I was getting really agitated because she undermined the entirety of the Uchiha massacre and Itachi's sacrifice. Her writing was good- the only reason why I remotely found myself still reading it while breathing heavily and fuming.  
Now I have this. _Recovery_ is a lot more simple and 'what you see is what you get' kind of story- which is a nice change from what I normally write.

Reviews and thoughts appreciated! :)

Until next time

~WAC


	2. Chapter 2

Here's a new chapter. My thanks to those of you who decided to follow. :)

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Sakura dragged her feet towards the Hokage Tower. She had gotten word not too long ago that the Hokage had wanted to have a word with her.

In the back of her fuzzy mind she knew this was going to come one day or another.

She had stopped accepting missions months back. She was tired of them.

Eight months ago she had finally snapped. Sakura had a meltdown and never recovered from it.

Reality had slowly begun to sink in as soon as Naruto had returned back from his training.

She remembered how excited she was to show Naruto and her sensei how strong she had become- how drastically she had improved from her training with the Slug Queen. After their bell exercise she felt a rush of satisfaction when she saw the shocked faces of the two. And when she heard her teacher sing appraisals in her ear she felt as if she were on cloud nine. The teamwork Naruto and she shared made her heart beat fast with adrenaline. She loved the feeling. She was in high spirits for a short while after his return, then all went ill.

The Akatsuki had served problems for Konoha and her insecurities creeped their way back and devoured her confidence in a split second.

As years went by she felt herself beginning to lose her place next to her comrades. Again, she felt like a mere fly in the presence of greatness.

At nineteen the dating world seemed to engulf everyone around except herself; Sakura was far too immersed in her work and her former teammate to even think about a boyfriend anyway. Ino quickly became engaged to Sai at twenty years of age, much to Sakura's shock. She knew, or thought, the blond still held the same lingering feelings for her dark hearted teammate. When she spoke of this to the Yamanaka, she simply got a pitiful smile and rejection of the thought.

Sakura felt a source of anger bubble in her chest. She felt betrayed and left in the dust.

Then Lee had left Konoha to go and travel; a 'Youthful Quest', he claimed. Just like that, one of her sparring partners left.

Everyone had slowly begun to fade their ties with one another.

Neji had been told on his twenty-first birthday that he was to be given the position of head. To everyone's confusion and acceptance, he had respectfully declined the Hyuuga's offer and remained loyal by Hinata's side. The heiress was suddenly in training to take over her father's position as clan leader, and Sakura barely heard a word from the west side of Konoha for some months after that.

It wasn't until Naruto's twentieth birthday, when everyone had pulled off a last minute get together at Chouji's place, did she see both Hyuuga's.

Hinata had reflected a glow and aweing radiance she never had before that left the team seven member still baffled as she made her way home alone. Hinata had caught a few eyes, in particular, a pair of clear blue ones that always seemed to follow Sakura… until now.

Naruto had "secretly" confided in Sai and her one day when they were trying out a new ramen shop (the blond would later exclaim 'Ichiraku would forever remain number one' to the top of his lungs and eventually get all three of them kicked out). He expressed very seriously how he felt about the purple tinted Hyuuga. They had never seen him so genuine and calm when talking of someone before.

Sai had awkwardly encouraged him and wished him luck; she had given him a slight smile and told him to go for it- that she would be right behind him.

If the medic-nin had known that those heartfelt words she uttered that day would be the ones to run Naruto out of her life, she never would have spoken to them.

Their relationship moved fast. Too fast in Sakura's eyes. In less than four months Sakura had accidentally overheard Kakashi and Naruto talking about him proposing to the heiress. She had briskly walked away from the flustered blond after he noticed her solemn aura. They didn't speak for two weeks.

Ultimately, it was Sai who had intervened and brought them back together. Their friendship was a bit strained, and if you asked Sakura, uncomfortable, but they were speaking terms. It became exceedingly difficult for her to be around him after she had gotten an invitation in the mail a few days later announcing that their wedding was to be held the next year- after Naruto's ceremony.

She felt an onslaught of mixed emotions about whether to go or not go. In the end she knew it was expected for her to attend, though she kept her distance and sent a letter to the Hyuuga compound notifying her acceptance.

The following months were spent trying to figure out what direction she wanted to go with her life. All of the emotional stress and depression she was under made her in no mood to train and participate in missions.

Sakura was apathetic about her decision and she stuck to what she knew she was good at. No one she knew would ever be able to surpass her in the medical field, not even Ino, whom had decided to follow her father's footsteps to the interrogation unit. She took whatever motivation and desires she held onto and concentrated it all into her work.

Tsunade, by this time, grew worried for her student, seeing her secluded and closed off to those she deemed important friends. Taking notice of her absence in taking on missions, she held a meeting with the pinkette, only to have it interrupted by a team of mangy Anbu. She had to tell Sakura off to deal with them, and she never saw her pupil in her office again after that. She made a mental note to herself to tend to Sakura, but the elders were jumping down her throat and analyzing everything she was doing as a result of the blond's inauguration that was coming up in less than five months. She had understandably forgotten about Sakura after weeks of running around trying to please the old fools.

That year, Sakura spent her birthday in the hospital. She had completely forgotten about it until Kakashi visited her the next day saying how he went to her house to give her her gift but she wasn't there. She smiled, gave him her thanks, and turned to proceed with her work. She had caught the warning look in his eye as he left that day. He knew what she was up to, but as long as he didn't interfere or confront her on it, she would ignore him and look the other way.

When she went home that night she went up to the landscape calendar the masked man had given her the year prior and marked two X's. It would be one hundred and four days until Naruto's ceremony.

The days melted into one another, and months blurred until that day presented itself.

That morning she felt like the dead walking but knew it was her best friend's big day.

The first half of the ceremony was spent in dead silence. She had never seen Naruto so serious. He was twenty two and he looked every bit of it. Sakura remembered when she first saw him at sixteen after three years. Back then she was surprised at how much his face had narrowed and took shape- not to mention the inches he grew on her. Now he looked one hundred percent man in her eyes, everything from his chiseled jaw to his broad shoulders to the warm intensity in his eye down to the length of his shadow he casted. Unlike six years ago he seemed to mature a bit, and Sakura never knew if she liked it that much.

He was serious, much more serious than he used to be, but even so, he was still the goofball she knew at her tender age of twelve when not working. With her, that didn't happen quite as often anymore.

The last half of the ceremony was informal, which to no surprise for Sakura, Naruto was quite pleased with. She could hear his complaints about the robe being too ridiculous looking to go and have fun in and then Tsunade smacking him upside the head; he then verbally countered and said how she couldn't do that anymore since he was the Rokudaime Hokage.

She remembered, for the first time in a long time she gave a little giggle. In that moment her gaze met with Naruto's.

That night Naruto had apologized to her, knowing their problems from last year technically went unresolved. He looked so earnest while he did it, too, and Sakura couldn't help but wonder if he even knew what he was apologizing for. But for the sake of their relationship she accepted him and they asked no questions about it since then.

The konoichi only saw him two times for the rest of the year. One being a pure coincidental meeting at Ichiraku, one Sakura should've definitely seen coming, and the other at Naruto's twenty third celebration. It wasn't much of a party in Sakura's opinion.

Guilt had racked up since his inauguration and she felt the need to make it up to him by surprising him. She had rounded up their old team, Yamato included, and had ramen at one in the morning at the young Hokage's apartment. That was the last time she had spoken with him.

But it wasn't the last time Naruto wanted to speak to her. After the New Year, the next couple of months were spent receiving messages from him asking if she wanted this or that mission. She politely declined each one. Then the next month consisted of him asking what was wrong with her or why she wasn't accepting any of the current mission requests. She made up excuses each time, and by the end of March she was just spouting out the same reasons.

Again, on her birthday she got a package from Kakashi and a visit at the hospital. This time he wasn't so adamant about leaving- insisting they have dinner that night. She relented in the end.

April rolled around and she stopped getting letters from Naruto all together.

She felt herself slowly melt into her day to day routine, the normalcy of it. Waking up early, going in early to the hospital, exerting her chakra to the point where she was too incapable of dragging herself home and was left with the only option of sleeping in one of the staff cots. Sometimes she'd feel up to going home, but that really just depended on her determination and how bad she wanted a real shower.

Her home was starting to dust, she spent most of her time at the hospital, and even on her supposed days off she would secretly sneak in and avoid all superiors under Tsunade, especially Shizune.

The day she got the message from Naruto was one of the few days she made it back home.

She was feeling particularly hungry that day only to open her small fridge and smell the dank, repulsive smell of mold. She was about to make a decision to clean her apartment top to bottom, but before she could officially decide a messenger hawk, out of all things, landed on the railing of her balcony. Naruto was short and to the point.

The meeting could go in a variety of directions and Sakura was feeling a bit annoyed that he was calling her this late after she got off her shift. She had no doubt he was waiting for this opportunity, too.

Moving her feet one at a time, she finally met with worn down concrete stairs. Her hand trailed lightly across the railing as her legs guided her up. Pushing open the door her sensitive skin met with blistering heat.

It's hotter in here than outside, she mentally fumed. She peeled off her red cardigan and draped it over her arm as she walked.

She didn't even bother to knock when she arrived. With a simple turn and push she entered Naruto's office where it was somewhat cooler than the halls- with his three fans running and all.

Sakura took a quick scan of the room, one she hadn't frequented in quite some time. It was surprisingly neat for someone such as Naruto. Though, she figured it was more of the busy body behind her friend than the actual man himself. She stood there proud and tall behind the Hokage. Face poised and careful, yet her eyes never met with hers. Sakura almost tilted her head while studying.

The blond looked up in surprise.

"Sakura!" He exclaimed. "That was fast." He smiled, a bit astound. Green eyes slowly rolled over to blue. No chan...

"I'm not Kakashi," she said flatly.

"Right, right…" he trailed off with a giggle. There was a moment of silence. "Well, uhm, anyway-"

"Naruto, what is this about?" She folded her arms, a finger tapped softly on her forearm. She almost frowned when his awkward and bashful face turned serious and solemn.

"I'll get straight to it then." He presumed the position that all Hokage's seemed to favor when speaking of something serious: head tilted down, hands folded in front of their face- blocking any emotion, and eyes dangerously stark. "Want to tell me why you haven't been on any missions since last year?"

"I've been busy at with the hospital," Sakura replied without giving thought to her answer.

"That's not what I meant."

"Well, that's what I've been doing- saving lives."

He broke formation and a hand came up to rub the area between his brows. He sighed dejected.

"Kakashi-"

"Kakashi what?" Her eyes gave the smallest of squints. His eyes sharply met hers.

"He's worried- I'm worried- we all are."

" _We_?" She could scoff. "Who's this we?"

"Ino, Sai, Yamato, Tsunade-"

"Right. Well, you can tell them I am quite healthy and very much alive. I would have told them if they asked," Sakura said.

"Sakura… That's not…" Naruto took a minute to regroup his thoughts then started again, "I know we've had our differences in the past, and I know our relationship isn't what it used to be, but I really do hope that you would still feel comfortable enough to tell me if something's wrong." He hesitated at his next statement.

"Kakashi has told me about how you almost never go home anymore and how you push yourself too much at work. I've never seen you act like this, Sakura…" She said nothing. She didn't have anything to say. Sakura definitely wasn't going to tell the Hokage what was bothering her, no way. What could he offer? His apologies? No, she had already gotten those and it did her little good.

"Is this about… Sasuke?" He asked somber. Her jaw tense with irritation and her nails begun to dig into her skin with ease.

"No," the med-nin spoke tersely.

"I know… we haven't made-"

"I said it's not!" Sakura seethed hotly. She could feel her heartbeat increase and she wasn't sure why. The medical specialist took a glance at the ever doting Hyuuga, then switched her gaze to the floor.

"It doesn't have anything to do with you. I'm focusing my attention to the hospital- is that so bad? People there need my help and expertise. If I wasn't there, who knows what would've happened to the few patients left in the care of some inexperienced nurse. I throw myself into my work just as you do with yours, so it would be hypocritical for you to call me out on this." Naruto's eyes narrowed then he stilled. He felt a flare of a familiar feeling. He took a side glance at his fiancée.

"Hinata-chan." She bent down for good measure. "I need you to stay here with Sakura for a minute. I need to deal with something," he whispered under his breath.

Sakura felt red at the exchange in front of her. How dare they whisper in front of her- they were talking about her as if she wasn't even there.

Naruto suddenly stood up and shredded his cover up leaving him in his signature orange pants, black ninja boots that went mid-calf, an unzipped jet black jacket with his clan symbol colored in bright orange on the sleeve, and a netted shirt underneath. The konoichi looked away from the sight. The black didn't suit him at all.

"I'll be right back. Hinata will be staying here with you." He walked passed her and paused before exiting. "This conversation isn't over yet. So don't even think about leaving, Sakura." She could've rolled her eyes. And she did, right after she heard the door close behind her.

She gave a halfhearted yawn and made her way to the cream colored couch against the wall to her right. Sakura sat down quietly and stared out the window, the view of a lit up Konoha lined her vision pleasantly.

In minutes she could feel all of the day's events taking its toll on her eyelids. She would've drifted off if it wasn't for the silent call of her name. She looked over, her patience wearing thin just about now.

"You know… Naruto-kun still cares about you- a lot. And I know you have had your problems, but he's genuinely worried about your health." Sakura looked away, trying to ignore the buzzing in her ears.

It was almost laughable how much confidence the girl seemed to grow in just a couple of months. She went from being unable to utter a complete sentence to the man she apparently loved to having full on conversations with strangers and having an opinion about everything. Honestly, the swift and abrupt change irked the pinkette very much.

She knew nothing of the situation between Naruto and her.

"When we both heard about how you've been acting, it struck concern in both of us."

 _Us, we_ , she could barely contain her irritation.

"I know Naruto-kun and you haven't seen each other in quite some time. Maybe it would do you good to visit one another every once and awhile. I know he'd love that…" She paused. "Sakura-chan…" Said woman gritted her teeth at the unapproved name. "If this really is about your teammate… I want you to know that you can talk to me- at any time. You're important to Naruto, so you're important to me, too.

You two have been through so much so young, and I know it weighs very heavily on your heart. But wouldn't it be best to move on from it? It's not healthy and rational to hold onto hurt like that-"

Pink locks whipped around to glower at the heiress.

"Who asked for your opinion anyway?"

Hinata's hand came up to her chest, taken aback from the other woman's outburst. "I… I just want you to-"

"Want me to what? Feign bliss and happiness? Sorry, I can't just be ignorant and go back to pretending everything's okay." The Hyuuga froze, not expecting the hostility at all. She knew Sakura and she weren't all too familiar and friendly in the first place, and when her relationship started with the Kyuubi host a year and a half ago, she expected the two of them to get closer. If she learned anything, the woman only seemed to want to put distance between the two of them and she wasn't sure why.

"Sakura-chan…" she called out worried. The twenty-three year old only quickly stood up.

"And don't call me so familiarly." She made her way to the door.

"Naruto-"

"If you're going to stop me, come and try," she spoke with coldness. The dark haired woman only stood there in silence.

The medic didn't even have the energy to laugh out loud.

 _I thought so._

* * *

Thanks again for reading!

Just for kicks, does anyone else think Uchiha Madara is the bomb? I was rewatching episode 322 and I was mesmerized, lol; total fan girl moment.  
Reviews and whatnot are greatly appreciated.

Till next time!

~WAC


	3. Chapter 3

Hi guys, thanks for the encouraging follows and favorites :))

I'm really pumped for the progress of this story, and I hope you guys stick with me until the end! Although, that maybe be a bit too much to wish for, lol, my updates tend to be once every few months.

But enough about me, I hope you guys enjoy the chapter~

* * *

Long, brisk strides were made to the opposite end of the tower. Naruto bit his thumb in frustration.

His teammate had always been an open book to him, but somewhere along the way the words and phrases begun to form a new tongue that he wasn't accustomed with but only one person- and that person hadn't been in his presence for quite some time.

Their situation- their relationship- was very much complicated. They were no longer their ignorant old selves. They had grown up and gained responsibilities and acknowledged what they hadn't wanted to before. Sometimes Naruto had to take a step back and do a self evaluation every now and then just to check that he wasn't too unlike himself.

His job was incredibly stressful and had easily overwhelmed him during his first six months in office. By the seventh and eighth he had gotten a vague hint at the do's and don'ts of his occupation.

He couldn't be rash or too emotional- things he was infamously known for in his village. At some point he got insanely engrossed in his work, to the point to where he had postponed the wedding. The date was undetermined at the moment, and he never got a break from Neji nor Hinata's clan for his decision, too. The title of Hokage of Konohagakure had been a dream of his since he embraced the light, and he never did and never will regret his acceptance of such an honorable title.

Times here and there he wanted to slack off and take a day off but then he would turn around and look out of the expanse, glass window: the view of his village stretching out for miles and miles. He knew he could never be selfish like that.

He shook his head to break his thoughts for a moment. He felt another twinge of that sensation. Picking up speed he quickly hurried down a hallway where he was met with a dead end.

Quick pluses of chakra gauged the security of what he was about to do.

In seconds he had made the twenty-five necessary hand seals to open up the hidden passage that led underground. Quickly running down the stairs, not making a sound, he thought about all of the assigned missions he had given out in the past months and nothing caught his attention as to why someone would signal for him to be down here- not even some of the long term assignments he gave out months ago.

He faced a chakra enhanced door that glowed an eerie soft green. Taking his hand he held it out and allowed a small bit of chakra leave his body and become absorbed by the door. The clicking of locks and gears shifted and the blond placed a slim calloused hand on the door and pushed.

He felt a waft of cool air evaporating the forgotten sweat off his forehead. The room could be, at most, described as a study. An abyss of black was the first to catch his gaze as his skin prickled at the drop in temperature. His eyes immediately switched to the large, dark wooden desk adjacent to it; a plush chair was placed behind it as well as two angled in the front. A large, plain dark grey rug was spread out over the wooden floors almost reaching the chairs in front of the desk. A low table and couch where located against the wall- a shogi board laid neatly on top of the glass table. A fire was the only thing illuminating the room, the lamp in the far corner of the room stood unlit, and Naruto didn't mind much.

He walked in with ease and carefulness. He took note of a man slouched on the far end of the couch: foot propped up on the other leg's knee, elbow supporting a head, and the other arm's hand loosely grasped a worn book of tangerine, the familiar crossed circle catching his eye before sliding over to a covered body lying near the pit of fire.

"Ah…" Kakashi lifted his gaze from his booking. He quickly took in his former student's self. "Naruto." He curtly shut his book in one motion and laid it next to the shogi set.

"Kakashi-sensei…" his whisper trailed off not knowing how to question his thoughts; his eyes never left the male figure that laid stone cold on the floor.

"We encountered him near the border of Grass. He didn't look like himself so I held back on orders, but an off duty border patrol team came and engaged in an altercation… I interfered then two more teams from the south tower came." Naruto took all this in as he made his way cautiously to the Uchiha. Squatting down he tilted his head to examine the injured man. Broken left arm, various cuts and bruises ran up his jaw bone and from what was exposed, his chest. He frowned.

"What happened? Why's he like this? Someone like him should have no problem dealing with small fry such as them." He was in Hokage mode and all that was left in his voice was the seriousness of authority.

He heard Kakashi make an awkward rustling motion with his hands, then give an almost inaudible sigh.

"As I said before… He wasn't acting like his normal self. He rarely put up a fight, his movements were thoughtless and sluggish. I was thinking he was along the lines of being ill or suffering the effects from his mangekyo but…"

"But you don't think so," he finished.

Kakashi gave a nod of concurrence. "It's odd…"

The vibration of the Kyuubi host's lips was his reply.

"These bandages. Was it Ino?"

"Yes. Although she stated his heartbeat had erratic tremors, so he should be looked at thoroughly and immediately."

"I'll try to see what I can do." With one touch to the sleeping man's hand, Naruto rose and faced his former sensei. "Hopefully Tsunade-baa can help."

The elder of the two jutted his hip and crossed his arms in response.

"You haven't said anything to her. How do you think she'll take your secrecy?"

"I couldn't care less, sensei," he retorted with an air of defiance. "It was my decision and I fully stand by it."

Kakashi barely managed to suppress raising a brow in response to his former student's minor hostility.

He knew that ever since the Kyuubi host had taken office, Tsunade has been swinging her opinion left and right. He's had the same conversation with Naruto for months about 'why should she be telling me what to do? If she wants to tell me how to run my village she should've stayed Hokage.' He found himself agreeing at times, the slug hime was definitely crossing boundaries. On the other hand, the sharingan user knew she had no ill intentions.

"What should we do with him in the meantime?" he asked as he softly tapped his foot.

The blond gave another glance at the Uchiha.

"Have him transported to my apartment." Kakashi opened his mouth to insert his opposition on the action but Naruto simply held up a hand. "If what you're saying is true then I see no reason for him to be locked up… besides, this is Itachi we're talking about." There was a beat of silence then a nod of agreement from the older male. "Make sure to change his bandages in the meantime; I'm not so sure how long this conversation with her might go for. They're under the bathroom sink." Turning to leave so he could address the other issue in his office, Kakashi spoke out.

"What do you suppose this mean right now?" His inquiry was only for Naruto's response to his question. He wanted to know how the young Hokage would treat the complication. It certainly wasn't a typical happening.

Naruto's relation with Sasuke was a deep and mysterious bond that went beyond anyone else's understanding. Even after all these years, Kakashi still never knew what sort of relationship the two held. It went beyond family, beyond brotherhood.

Would he inform the young Uchiha of his brother's capture or would he merely hide it? To his knowledge, the blond has not had any sort of communications with his fellow teammate for a few years. His last encounter had surprisingly not ended with an all out match and even more shocking- no yelling from the two shinobi.

"I'm not sure right now, sensei." And with that he left.

His walk to the former Hokage's house was a long and meaningful one. He used the time to sort out his thoughts and put together a bit of what he was going to say. He never imagined he would actually have to tell the busty blond anything. The foxy blond wasn't even sure if she already knew and all his thought out preparation was for naught.

He gave a hefty sigh as he ruffled his bed of yellow locks before knocking curtly. Not a minute later was the door whipped open by the woman.

"Naruto?" she questioned, skeptic.

Said man gave a tight smile and asked if he could come in to have a word. Nodding, she opened the door and walked to her living room.

Naruto glanced around. Her apartment still looked as tidy as ever. He never understood how she was a neat freak at home but when it came to work she was a complete slob- not that he was one to talk.

Taking off his sandals, he followed quickly after the pig tailed woman.

She offered him tea and sake but he refused with a slight wave of his hand. She crossed her arms under her bosom, still not quite catching onto the gutsy ninja's unexpected visit.

"So? What's this about." He noticed the hint of irritation in her voice.

"I have a request, Tsunade-san…" he spoke evenly. She perked at this and leaned her head on her hand. Naruto only really used her name if all acts of humor weren't present.

"Go on." She raised a brow.

He folded his hands under his chin and looked at the cream colored curtains to get his thoughts in order.

"First… do you have a protective barrier up?" he inquired.

"Should I?" the Sanin responded with her red painted nail tapping the table. He gave her a noted look. Sighing she made the signs and a pulse of her chakra ran over the room. "I really don't know what this is about, but is this really necessary?"

"Did Jiraiya-ero sennin give or say anything to you that was not to be shared?" he carefully questioned, ignoring her earlier statement. She squinted her eyes.

"Not repeated? Such as-"

"Village secrets."

"Secrets?" she scoffed." I was the Yondaime Hokage, Naruto, even if I didn't know everything, I knew everything of importance." He glanced at her, giving her a certain look. "Besides, if Jiraiya knew anything like that, I'm hoping he would have told me…" She sat up straighter and closed her eyes. "Yet seeing as to why you're here, I don't think that's the case."

"Yeah…" he trailed off. "Well, I don't exactly have the time to explain everything but, when I became Hokage, I took your advice and looked at Konoha's records, everything: active and deceased ninja, unsigned documents, hospital records, the village's revenue records… when I came upon some documents with guarding out of country ninja statuses, I couldn't help but notice a couple of things- namely Jiraiya's reports. I looked back on some of his reports about nine years ago; I didn't know Jiraiya was the one who informed the Third of the Akatsuki's activities. I read more and more. The more I looked, the odder it seemed."

"Odd?" Tsunade questioned. She had noticed too, but only thought he had the upper hand because he wasn't confined to the village's walls. He nodded.

"He had information no one else had at the time, I contacted Gaara to check. His intel was incredibly detailed and… frequent." He looked Tsunade in the eye, giving her the most intense look she's seen yet. "He used to check in about every six months, then out of the blue, during my time as a genin, it changed to every five. I had training afterwards with Ero sennin so it fluctuated for three years. Seven years ago his updates changed abruptly to every two months.

"More information, more stats, it was more information than I knew we previously had on the Akatsuki. I started thinking that the only way he could have this much info on the organization was if he had someone on the inside leaking it but then cleared it. No one in the Akatsuki would benefit from it.

"I decided my next best option was to look at the pigeon carrier records. When he would be in Kumo it would come from the north tower at times, Suna sometimes the west, his location never correlated with the messenger towers. I tried looking for patterns and I found one," he finished.

She frowned. "Pattern? What pattern?"

"I can't elaborate on that. It's classified." She narrowed her eyes in frustration. There were a lot of holes Naruto was refusing to close up for her to understand his point.

"What do you mean classified? I was the Hokage-"

"Was." Naruto empathized. "Last time I checked that doesn't mean you still have the same privileges." They looked at eachother for a pregnant minute.

"I found a location by pure dumb luck." He switched his gaze to the ticking cat clock by her kitchen.

She held up a finger. "Wait a minute. You found a location?" Tsunade's finger made a motion towards him. If he meant what she thought he did… He gave her lopsided grin.

"Had to do what I had to do." Was his explanation.

"You brat!" she exclaimed, eyes wide. She leaned in to hiss at him, "What if the village elders had learned of this."

He waved a dismissive hand. "I left Shikamaru in my place and told him to play as me for a bit. Shikamaru's reliable."

"You didn't answer my question," she growled.

"I'm pressed for time, so maybe some other time?" He cocked a brow at her, fueling her irritation. This newly founded sense of cocky arrogance never ceased to make her want to slam her fists into that nicely sculpted face of his.

"The location seemed to be of some of hideout or rendezvous place. It had protective barriers that made it almost impossible for me to even know about its whereabouts, let alone go inside. It had ero sennin's scent all over it, along with one unidentifiable source… that was, until I figured out who it was."

"Who was it?"

"Uchiha Itachi."

Her eyes got as large as saucers. It was taking the blond a good minute to file this information away, but the other blond paid no heed and continue speaking.

"Him and Ero sennin had been meeting up at that location, yet I suspect there are various meeting places because at how run down and decrepit it looked, although that could've just been the result of Jiraiya being dead all these years.

"I made a personal investigation with the assistance of Shikamaru. We back tracked everything with guarding Uchiha Itachi, for why was he selling the Akatsuki's information behind their back and helping his ex-village?" She nodded in thought. He was right, it didn't add up. "Shikamaru had a conclusion at the time-pretty out there… He thought that maybe Uchiha was working with Jiraiya to take down the Akatsuki. He said he reread all files on Uchiha- which we found was very close to none." His eyes held a hint of suspicion in them as he glanced Tsunade's way, though she didn't catch on.

"And he stated there were holes in Uchiha Itachi and the Uchiha clan's past leading up to both of their demises."

"Such as?" He neglected her need for follow up information.

"Classified," he simply stated. "Long story short, Uchiha Itachi isn't the evil, narcissist we all believe him out to be." Naruto finished nonchalantly glancing at the clock again. He took note of how much time he had spent here. The gambler tightened her fists at his vagueness. How was she suppose to rely on his opinion when he presented her no facts? She couldn't just take the idiot's word for it- no matter how much she wanted to. He was telling her they were treating a fugitive with hostility all these years for no reason.

"He's innocent of his crimes."

"Why are you telling me this now." she demanded, not wanting to beat around the bush. "You said before you needed a favor. What is it?"

"Kakashi brought him here."

"Here?" she exclaimed. "What for!"

"I'm not sure, but he needs immediate medical attention." She scoffed- not bothering to hide her contempt for the Uchiha as she leaned back and crossed her arms once more.

"You're asking me to heal and care for him?" she clarified, dumbfounded.

A single nod was his response.

"You must be out of your damn mind, you brat," she glowered, her blood was on fire. Who did he think he was? Just because the kid grew a couple of inches, upgraded his slim to none jutsu, and made title of Hokage, he thought he knew better than her. She was two times his superior in age and had far more experience than he could ever account for.

"I need you."

"I need more than that."

They stared at each other in total silence. Both waiting for the other to cave in like they used to, but time had changed them, and they knew better.

Naruto's voice slipped through the cracks of their bitter stalemate.

"Don't make me issue an official order of demand." His voice rang out cold. Tsunade slanted her eyes and banged her fist on the poor table.

"...Fine." Her gaze lifted to rest on the other blond.

Naruto's shoulder tensed in satisfaction. Now that he somehow convinced Tsunade, he needed her to tend to Itachi immediately. He thought back to how poor of a condition he left him in and nearly spaced on what the Princess was saying.

"But don't think you can keep me in the dark for long, Naruto."

With his mouth straight and firm, he gave a chaste nod.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Please, tell me your thoughts on it. :)

Oh by the way, if anyone is stll watching the Naruto fillers now (probably barely anyone right now) if you have an interesting piece of information about Itachi's childhood, please fill free to share it. I'd watch it but I haven't watched the anime since the beginning of the war; (I've finished the manga though) I'm really funny about watching things in order.

Until next time.

~WAC


	4. Chapter 4

Hi guys, thanks for taking the time to read this! Decided it was time to finally update since I made some head way on the story line.  
I remember writing Sakura during this and the next chapter; it was extremely difficult and unsatisfying, but I got it to where I think it's acceptable to post. Tell me what you guys think!

I've been getting back into Hoperai, again...

Enjoy~

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"Well, how ya feelin'?" Naruto inquired, eyebrow raised and head tilted to the side.

Itachi's slumber was interrupted by those exact words. Bleary lids peeled apart- agonizingly too slow in Naruto's opinion. He huffed, not one too big on patience.

The first thing Itachi registered was the warmth that was radiating all around him, the second was that he was covered up, the third was the large, wide-eyed face with whiskers inches from his face preventing him from identifying where he was. The last thing he remembered was seeing the broad back of the Copy Ninja and then everything in between from then and now was hazy.

He blinked wearily as he heard his name being obnoxiously called out. Again he blinked, this time to clear the fog that was his vision. The blurred face was being to become clearer and more identifiable.

His eyes flew open. "Naruto-kun," he whispered hoarsely with shock. The name flew from his mouth, his mind not functioning to its maximum capacity.

The young hokage reached a hand behind him and nervously scratched his head.

"Oha-" His embarrassed introduction with the prodigy was interrupted when Itachi made a clumsy attempt to get away from the kid. Naruto's eyes widened, and he immediately got up to steady the raven.

"Itachi, you shouldn't get up just yet." Naruto's touch felt unbearably hot on Itachi's skin. Where and why was he here? He couldn't wrap his head around why the Kyuubi host was helping him of all people- the brother who made his best friend's life a living hell for years on end. He paused and felt his heart constrict. He clutched the front of his dirtied shirt right above his chest.

The blond tightened his grip on the taller man's elbow and waist. It looked as if he was momentarily stunned. Naruto took the opportunity and carefully brought him back down to the ground. He placed him in a sitting position and took a seat in front the Akatsuki member.

It took a while for Itachi to sort out his emotions, but Naruto willingly waited.

"I…" Itachi cleared his throat, then connected eye contact. "Where am I?" he questioned. All sense of confusion and vulnerability the Hokage had seen prior was lost. He was talking to the S-class ninja everyone in the five nations feared right now.

"Konoha," Naruto stated, face passive and void of emotion now.

Itachi tensed. Konoha? Why of all places was he here? He could only take an educated guess that it was Hatake who took custody of his immobile body and returned back to his home. He took a look around. What he really couldn't comprehend was why he wasn't in a jail cell or interrogation unit of some sort. Itachi wasn't as weak as he looked, he could still hold his own if warranted. Surely he was regarded as a danger to the citizens of Konoha.

"More specifically, my place," he added on an afterthought.

"Why am I here?" he voiced, a shred of anger Naruto didn't pick up on rippled out.

The youngest crossed his arms. "Why'd you cross into Konohagakure territory?" he deflected.

Itachi stayed silent and fixed his gaze on his bloodied hands that laid on his lap. His whole body felt like dead weights.

"Well?" He waited. "I'll answer your question if you answer mine."

The Uchiha thought quietly about his word choice- not wanting to reveal too much, only just enough to let it pass off as an acceptable answer.

"I had some personal business to take care of…" He let his gaze fall to the wicked flames that danced beside him. Flares of yellow and orange clashed in a rhythm that soothed the older man.

The blond frown a bit, disappointed in Itachi's answer, but couldn't really expect much. He could only guess as to how many questions said man had in his head.

"Ano," he started out, quite loudly at that, "my sensei brought home an injured shinobi, so how could I have just turned a blind eye? Especially when he looked so weak," He responded with an air of causality. If one squinted, the man's words came close to ones of a friendly tease. It was as if he was talking about his favorite type of ramen or what his plans were for tomorrow, not at all as if he were talking to a criminal. It was almost as if he were talking to a- Itachi's eyes swirled with red and black as they snapped towards the blue eyed man. Sharingan clashed with cerulean blue.

He didn't have to say anything. Uzumaki could see the look in the raven's eyes; the panic and surprise was well hidden under his stone like mask, but he knew. Naruto confirmed his thoughts just to make sure Itachi knew where he stood.

"I know about the Uchiha Clan." he declared. "And about Jiraiya-san."

A shiver ran across the brunette's skin. Jiraiya and he were incredibly cautious. For even that to be uncovered, he didn't want to fathom the thought of all that the blond knew.

"How." he bit out. He demanded an answer. He was so meticulous- so careful to check over his shoulder each and every single day while on the run. It was sad how ever since he found out about _that_ the foundation of his life seemed to come down in shambles.

"Trust me, it wasn't easy in the slightest." Naruto decided to grab the tea he had made not too long ago from the table and pour some for the two of them. He gingerly placed it on the table edge closest to the older. "It took me a long while- months. I'd stay up late thinking about it. I didn't connect anything at all until I found you guys' meeting point near the border of Kirigakure. It was really hard... determining what to do with all of this new information." He gave a dry chuckle and a small shake of his head. He took a sip of the tea. "Who should I tell? Should I exonerate you and tell the village or not tell them? Punish the elders? Somehow contact Sasuke and inform him? It was difficult, indeed…" Not hearing a reply from his guest after a while he looked up noticing his blank stare directed back towards the flames.

"How do you know I won't attack?" Naruto paused, then burst out into laughter. Itachi peaked a glance at him, secretly astounded, not knowing what was so funny.

"I'm sorry." The man gave another yelp, still amused and holding his stomach. He wiped an invisible tear. "If you would've wanted to hurt me you would've done so a _long_ time ago." He smirked a bit. "And you never did…" Naruto fell into deep thought then spoke.

"How come you kept silent? Why didn't you… tell Sasuke?" he questioned. His brows pulled together in thought and confusion.

He opened his mouth again but was quickly cut off.

"I must tell you something, Naruto-kun." Blond brows furrowed slightly. "About my otouto."

"Sasuke?" Naruto spoke out in surprise. A nod was all he got in response.

"Well, what is-"

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but I must state I will say no more until all previous members of Team Kakashi are within my line of vision." He looked down, his fringe falling to obscure his face. "I only wish to repeat this once." Naruto's brow knit together in perplexity and suspicion.

"What's he done?" He stared long and hard at the Uchiha, but he said nothing. Narrowing his eyes, he set them on the delicate tea cup in his hand.

"I'll have Kakashi rounded up in about ten minutes. I hope that's appropriate?"

"Haruno Sakura?"

The Rokudaime visibly stiffened. Clenching his fist, he started, "I don't think-"

"With all due respect… I think it's something all three of you need to hear together."

He bit his lip in frustration. He wasn't planning on telling Sakura anything. The only ones who knew the whole truth of the matter was Kakashi and Shikamaru- both whom he considered to be trustworthy- not saying Sakura wasn't.

Not knowing where he stood with her was part of his secrecy, the other was confining and isolating the truth to only a few for precautionary measures. Hinata didn't even know; he had already gone and told Tsunade, and now he would probably have to expose Sakura to the truth.

If it did have to come to that… he was wary at how she would take the information. She could have various reactions to anything nowadays. His worst fear was her breaking upon hearing the news… she was sensitive and compassionate just as he was. But for a few years she had lost a lot of that. She was walking on a very fine line and he was waiting for her to trip over the ledge and plummet down into a sea of black. Naruto hoped he would be there for whenever she did, but recent events brought him to a hard to swallow conclusion that, that most likely won't be possible given their current frayed relationship.

He looked at his picture of his former team hung by the door. Right next to that one was a picture of Sakura, Sai, and him at Ichiraku. The one below was of Hinata and Naruto at Ino's wedding. At that time, he was very aware of Hinata and never knew she could look so beautiful… He had wanted to get a picture together with Sakura and Sai but she had left not even an hour into festivities, saying something about having a headache.

"Naruto-kun." His thoughts were broken and transfixed themselves back to the issue at hand.

He nodded slowly. "Right… just… give me twenty minutes, and I'll be back with both of them."

He stood up to leave them turned around. "Before I go to get them, I'll pick you up a change of clothes. I know staying in dirtied, bloody clothing isn't ideal."

He caught it, but almost didn't catch the man giving the tiniest of thank yous. He gave a small smile and a promise of return with takeout.

For being in such a gosh awful hurry, Sakura felt as if Naruto wasn't moving as fast as he should have. He was known to have the stamina of a large village, so she found it odd and suspicious that he ran at such a mildly fast pace.

When they passed the bakery that was down the corner from where she usually acquired her ninja tools, the medic knew their destination was to her friend's house. She could've easily questioned the man but Naruto was giving off a strange aura that called for no questioning at the moment. He hadn't spoken one word to her since the two left her apartment building.

They finally arrived at their destination when she noticed the fidgeting. Almost raising a brow, she opened her mouth to speak but Naruto beat her to it.

He whipped around, mouth thin and pressed.

"I really need you to not freak out, okay? Just…" He paused, trying to choose the correct wording to avoid offending the woman. "Just don't freak out. There's a reason for everything." He turned around, footsteps now hurried. "I wanna be able to sleep in my house tonight," he mumbled dryly.

Turning the knob, Sakura was hit with a wafting smell of takeout noodles and some sort of tea scent. The only light in the small apartment was the one in the living room some ways away.

The two slid off their shoes and with trained feet, silently made their way into the open room. The flickering of small flames basked the room in an earthly glow, the lamp in the corner of the room provided assistance in the like. Kakashi looked up from the mud colored sofa with a 'yo' and a wave then promptly glued his eyes back to his book. She could roll her eyes, so typical. Then she noticed someone was in the shower.

Giving the blond next to her a slow and long questioning side glance she finally gave in and took a seat on one of the cushions on the floor with a huff. Kakashi didn't even peak up to acknowledge her irritable mood.

She waited and waited then finally lost her patience when her idiot of an ex-teammate walked back into the room with his mouth full of Ichiraku ramen and convenient store onigiri.

"What exactly are we waiting for?" she growled as lightly as she could.

"Our guest," Kakashi spoke behind his book.

"Care to tell me who that is?" she quipped.

"Not particularly… no," He spoke in his usual too-cool voice that only fueled her fire of annoyance even more.

The abrupt sound of the shower turning off stopped the konoichi from saying something rude. No one looked like they were going to speak a word until the unknown person from Naruto's room finally came out, so she decided to wait it out as calmly as she could while contemplating all the trouble and woes Sasuke had trailed behind him this time. He had either kept his head low long enough for something serious to suddenly pop up or people were withholding information. She wouldn't be surprised- Sasuke could be intimidating when he decided the situation called for someone to be scared out of their pants. She's definitely had her fair share of those instances and all of who laughed in his face ended up with theirs smashed on the ground eating up dirt like it was going out of style.

He had given her quite the fright in those instances. Her body would go rigid at his cold demeanor and most of the time her limbs went numb, unable to do anything worthwhile.

Her lids fluttered shut, short dark lashes barely touching the tops of her cheeks, as she tried to prepare herself for the emotional rollercoaster that was to follow.

Abruptly, the door to Naruto's room opened, the slight creak it always made when one opened it too slow gave the visitor away. She had to double check she heard the irate noise, for she heard no footsteps nor felt a chakra signature.

Opening her eyes, she lifted them slowly only to have them open wide like saucers in fear. She let out a shaky breath and unconsciously made a move backwards. Her eyes never left his face, and his yet had yet to meet hers.

"Someone's looking better," Kakashi commented as he snapped his book shut.

Itachi gave a small nod of acknowledgement to the three and swept quiet eyes over the trio. His eyes lingered a bit longer at the distraught form of a specific Haruno.

"Naruto-kun." His deep voice reached softly to the other's ears. "You did not tell Haruno-san?" The monotonous tone of his voice shaped the question into more of a statement.

"Mm," he affirmed with a vigorous head nod, "it would be too-"

" _What the hell is this?_ " Three pairs of eyes snapped to the lone woman in the room, whose body seemed to be in a defensive position now, ready for said criminal to attack them all. "Why is he-" She glared at the Uchiha.

To say the pinkette was confused and frustrated would have been a complete understatement. She was furious. In all her twenty-three years of living she had yet to find a man she loathed more than Uchiha Itachi. There was no other human alive who was basked in more sin than he, and bask in it he did. There wasn't a shinobi in the five nations who didn't know _what_ he was. They all knew what he had done- what he never justified.

He was man coated with blood red, and upon further inspection from her- a beautiful man drenched in the blood of his fellow kinsmen. All of the heartache he brought upon her village was catastrophic and unmentionable. Growing up with the massacre, it marking her second year of the ninja academy, unexpectedly dampened her childhood experience as a whole. Not only that but it did little more to alter her relationship with the young Uchiha.

Don't talk about it. Don't say his brother's name. Don't stare too long at Uchiha-kun. Don't mention family around him. Just forget about it.

How she wished she could've been one of those people who had the luxury of living in ignorance.

Instead, she had developed an unhealthy obsession as a result of peer pressure and a potent desire for acceptance only to fray the only solid relationship she had and actually fall in love with her mysterious teammate at the age of twelve.

Involuntarily Sakura quickly shot up and ran to the exit, before she could even attempt to open the door, there was a firm grip on her wrist.

"Remember what I said earlier?" Naruto spoke in her ear, voice low. Her eyes cut to his. He was close to her, head dipped down to an intimate level to decrease their differences in height.

"You didn't say anything about this. There is no reasonable explanation as to why you are boarding a fugitive, Naruto. And out of all of them Sasuke's brother." Sakura matched his even voice.

"I can't-"

"Can't or won't?" Her tone left Naruto fighting with what to and to not say. Luckily Itachi saved him from saying any more.

"It is of no difference if it is known or not."

"Knows _what_?" the woman growled softly to the blond who in return gave a disapproving shake of his head, hoping she would dismiss her inquiries.

"Sakura take a seat," the hokage spoke, not releasing his hold on his friend.

"I'm leaving right now," she stated, defiant. Kakashi decided that enough was enough and cut into his former student's small quarrel.

"Sakura." The seriousness and hardness in his voice was very easy to distinguish. Clenching her jaw and tightening her fists, without a sound she turned around. Naruto passed her on her way back and she halted just before couch, not making herself comfortable as a small sign of rebellion. Itachi would have suggested sitting right now would be in her best interests, but he knew it would only go in one ear and out the other with a side of snarling and fiery glares- so he let her be. It was best to have everyone as remotely comfortable - or as much as they could be within his presence.

The pinkette moodily crossed her arms and ankles while leaning on the wall behind her. Her head was turned to the side, resigned to deny that there was a third figure in the room.

* * *

Sorry to cut the scene short! I'll hopefully post the next one in a few weeks or so, but don't take my word for it.  
If I had posted the chapter to the length I had wanted it, it would've set me back again.

Thanks for your patience and for reading this story! I really am proud of this one all around and know it'll live up to my expectations.

Review and follow, please!

~WAC


	5. Chapter 5

Here's another chapter! This one is way smaller than the rest because of the way my scenes are divided, so you guys should be getting another chapter before Christmas :))

Thanks for all of the support by favoring and following. Special thanks to those who have reviewed- it means a lot to hear back from my audience.

Enjoy!

* * *

The pinkette moodily crossed her arms and ankles while leaning on the wall behind her. Her head was turned to the side, resigned to deny that there was a third figure in the room. Sadly, her curiosity got the best of her and before she acknowledged that she was eyeing the man, it was too late. It looked to her as if he paid no heed to her, that or just didn't notice her obvious stare down. Head still turned, her emerald hues slid over and analyzed the Uchiha. He surprisingly had no clouded cloak on; she figured it shouldn't have struck her as odd as it did, for she didn't really believe he would wear it every second of the day- not to say she stayed up in bed thinking about what S-class Akatsuki criminals wore during their free time.

His attire compiled of simple long, black capris and a long sleeved navy shirt that was stained with damp spots here and there due to his washed hair. She noticed the jaundice in his appearance when she saw his collarbone shyly peeking out of the black netting beneath his shirt. His cheekbones were high and his cheeks were a bit too hollow for someone who was suppose to be in tip top condition. His skin, although tan, was dull in color and paled in comparison to Naruto's. The only part of Itachi that looked normally healthy was the long, almost black looking locks of wet hair that he had moved behind his squared shoulders.

"So Sasuke…" Naruto quipped, his desire to be in the know of his defective friend. Itachi took a seat, opposite of where Sakura was sitting earlier. She sure was glad she got up and moved.

"It has come to my knowledge that my otouto," Sakura almost snorted, "under certain circumstances…

"Is dead."

The air around them went still and froze. Sakura felt every muscle in her body go slack. Itachi's words rang in deaf ears.

"Heh, what do you mean?" Naruto raised a questionable hand up to gesture his confusion. Itachi looked over, his eyes suddenly very heavy. Blue eyes glossed over, wet. "Dead?" He repeated. "If anything's dead it's that guy's thought process," he tried to laugh off. Then his face crumpled.

"I…" His eyes went wide, brimming with unshed tears. He opened his mouth, a poor attempt to say something again, but a strangled sob was all that came out. He held a hand to his downturned face.

Kakashi couldn't turn his eyes away from his student as a familiar wave of helplessness grappled its way into his heart. "Do you know what happened?" he asked his voice quiet and calm.

Itachi turned his head and met eyes with the copy ninja. "No."

There was a gap of silence filled with Naruto's silent cries until a feminine voice broke it.

"Stop crying, Naruto." She raised her head and bore holes into Uchiha Itachi's forehead. "What proof do you have?" There was just no possible way Sasuke was dead. If anything, this seemed like some sort of ploy to finally get everyone off of his trial. Looking indirectly at the man in front of her she still couldn't piece together why her former sensei and teammate had such trust in the Konoha traitor- nor did she particularly care. Why would he care? Why should he, the very man who had set out to selfishly live his life and in the same process, made the man she love suffer every waking moment?

The information she currently had wasn't fitting together correctly.

"Why would you say he's dead? What do you benefit out of it?" Her voice shook, astounded by his heart wrenching proclamation, her fists lay silently balled up at her side. "How can you just walk in here and tell us something like that and expect us to believe it?"

"Sakura…" Naruto's head rose a minute ago, surprised by his friend's persistent denial. "Sakura, he's telling the truth," he sniffed.

"How do you know that!" Her eyes were wild with emotion. "You're taking the word of a traitor?" Her eyes went wide, aghast.

"Why would he lie?"

"Why would he tell us?"

It was a smart retort and when no one answered she gave a snide snare to the three of them.

"I don't know what's going on with the three of you- but you," she directed towards Itachi, "I haven't forgotten anything. Regardless of my teammate's apparent trust in you, mine will _never_ lay in your hands." She glared at the ever stoic man's forehead.

With that, the male graciously rose and retreated back to Naruto's room. She let a breath escape her then quickly held it, for he was back. Though this time he held something tightly to his chest.

Arm out stretched over the low leveled table. A loud clatter caused Sakura to jump at the foreign object. She looked and swallowed thickly.

Sasuke's sword laid sheathed and battered with dirt and scratches.

Her mouth quivered as she realized it was that very same chokuto that threatened to kill her on a couple of occasions, the very same one that haunted her dreams. Now it laid almost as lifeless as the body she thought would never see the depths of death. Tears pricked the corner of her eyes and her throat swelled and ran hot.

Biting her lip, she just asked, why. It came out desperate for an answer- trembling and vaguely incoherent.

She had a million questions from how he died and where, to why now- was this the reason for his long hiatus, why was this man out of all people reporting on such a sensitive issue?

Fighting the urge to cry she looked up with a cold emptiness Naruto and Kakashi had never seen before.

Looking right in the Uchiha's eye this time she spoke, "I hate you."

Puppet like eyes, stared her down until she retreated her eyes and took her leave with a slam of the door.

The room went silent for the longest of times as Itachi just stared at the sword, forlorn and abandoned on the table in front of him.

* * *

"That's why you came here." The question came out of nowhere from the blond. Itachi lifted his head up from the now lukewarm soup his now caregiver brought back for him. He wasn't all that hungry, but he had yet to eat a full, proper meal in days.

After Kakashi gave a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes and a friendly goodnight with hints of his hidden solemn mood, Itachi took it upon himself to leave the blond alone and make his way into kitchen. He had been dining without making any noise, trying to stay considerate to the jinchuriki's thoughts in the next room. Actually, he wasn't expecting to be talked to for the rest of the night, and he was taken off guard at the question.

He placed the spoon down across his bowl and left his hand on the table in front of him.

"For the most part." His voice was low enough not to disrupt the stale silence that had developed between the two.

"Who told you?"

"An informant of mine."

A soft hum filled Itachi's ears, a sign that the air conditioner had switched itself on. Not hearing anymore questions from the blond, the Uchiha picked up his spoon and continued to eat until he was done.

It did not take him long to clean up after himself, and by then he felt all of the day's events catching up to him.

As soon as he stepped into the living room, Naruto shot up from the couch and rushed off to his room. Clouded, dulled eyes followed the figure and then watched it emerge with a couple of blankets and a neon green pillow. Passing them off to the older male, Naruto's eyes caught a hold of the forgotten sword.

"Sorry, this is all I have. I usually don't have guests stay over," he spoke dazed, letting his gaze not wander. Itachi's eyes softened as he followed the other's gaze. He looked back at the whiskered face that was torn and broken underneath.

"You may keep it if you wish." He stated softly and turned his back as he heard a sound of surprise come from The Seventh. He spread out the first blanket over the couch, propped the pillow, and draped the second sheet on top. Itachi brushed his fingers over the material a couple of times in thought.

He didn't know what was to come next for him. Coming here- back to Konoha- and Sasuke's death especially, was not in his book of plans. Years ago he wouldn't have thought he'd even make it past his twenty-first birthday, let alone his twenty-seventh. He closed his eyes momentarily, dark lashes resting on the very top of his cheeks.

He would have to have a conversation about this with Naruto in the morning. He wished he could give his brother's friend more time to mourn, but he was feeling a lot of different emotions being back in the village. The most prominent being itchy. As much as he missed his home, he felt immensely uncomfortable. Itachi was still very familiar with the guilt that laid within his heart. It seemed to never fade away, and when his brother died, the ugly self-desecrating emotion resurfaced tenfold.

He had secretly wished to never come back to his village, yet a part of Itachi knew he still desired the radiating sun, the friendly faces of the villagers and little occupants, and the calm local winds that would blow his hair affray and gently carry the fallen petals of wilting flowers. It seemed almost instantly after those thoughts that he remembered the reason for his exile and a feeling of self-disgust threatened his being. He secretly wished to never come back to his village because he knew- a smile would never be pointed in his direction again.

Itachi has come to accept that after years of trembling before him from shinobi whom he could have maybe associated with if certain events did not play out the way they did. He learned it from the constant hostility and hatred he received for just existing at the tender age of thirteen and a half.

He opened his eyes. His hand stopped moving and his gaze lingered on his digits for a prolonged minute or two.

For now he would let his body recover- it was still sore even after all the healing he had received. Before the blond had left he inquired about who had healed him to satisfy his own curiosity. He didn't get an answer, which was fine with him. There really was only one medic qualified, to his knowledge, intellectually and position-wise to heal him.

He had wondered how the Hokage had convinced the stubborn slug woman to heal him then came to the unfortunate conclusion. He really wanted to keep his secret under wraps, and yet another soul knew of it. He didn't hold it against the younger man though; he was only doing what he thought was appropriate at the time. He prayed the Senju hime wouldn't raise a riot about it. He didn't know her, but based on numerous rumors and a few reliable sources, her temper was one to be trifled with, and a former hokage in an uproar was the last situation he wanted.

Itachi had turned around to wish the man a fair night but was met with emptiness. Naruto had left while he was contemplating. With an inaudible sigh, he resigned himself to sleep for the night but stopped short after taking a look at the cleared table.

A smile of knowing almost found its way onto his face.

* * *

Thanks for reading again! Let me know what you guys think :) Were you expecting Sasuke to be dead- is he even _really_ dead? Only one person knows~ (which would be me). Do you think Sakura's reacting was a justifiable one?

I hope all of you have a great holiday next week! I know I will.

Until next time,

~WAC


	6. Chapter 6

Hey guys! Hope everyone had a fantastic couple of holidays :) This chapter is a bit longer than others, so I hope you enjoy!  
I can't believe I have 40 followers, and I'm only on chapter 6... Thanks for the support! Anyways-

* * *

A splitting, mind boggling headache cheerfully greeted Itachi in the morning. His limbs felt worse from the night before, getting stiff from the lack of mobility in his sleep. He was sure this was what it felt like to get trampled on by a herd of cattle. In pain, yet too tired to care, the man rolled over attempting to catch some more shut eye before he would have to face the reality of his situation once more. His peace was quickly ruined when he heard the soft shuffling of footsteps run across the floor.

Remembering he was currently in the abode of the Rokudaime Hokage and that he needed to update said man on his thoughts, Itachi swallowed his sloth-like desires and gracefully rolled up into a sitting position.

The low counter tops and window-like access into the kitchen allowed for the blond to look up from the fridge with alarmed eyes as if he also almost forgot what transpired. He gave a half smile with dead eyes and shut the door. "Ohayou."

"Ohayou gozaimasu." He softly replied.

Naruto was a bit lost for this morning's breakfast conversation. After last night, he didn't even think about what he was going to do or what he was supposed to do today. To him, talking nonchalantly about recent events was absolutely out of the question. He didn't even know Sasuke's brother- apart from what he knew which was fact and what little Kakashi had shared about him of their Anbu days together. The last time they had talked… he wondered where Itachi obtained Sasuke's chukuto ...

The masked nin had spoken highly of him even though Naruto knew he was trying to leave out all biases. From what he had gathered, Itachi had been a nice kid: honest, polite, and dutiful-even had a strange, dry sense of humor. Kakashi said he wasn't in Anbu when things really started to go south for the Uchiha Clan, but he heard various rumors of the eldest- most of which he said he was not going to dignity by reiterating them.

But fortunately for Naruto the Uchiha spoke first.

"I must talk with you today," he stated bluntly. Naruto stopped struggling with a package of pork ramen and set it on the kitchen counter. He set his mouth to a firm line.

"Yeah."

Itachi could visibly see the weariness in those blue eyes. By his guess, the kyuubi host didn't sleep as soundly as he did, and he felt a pang of guilt pull a heartstring. Before the dark-haired man could get anymore out, Naruto questioned for coffee. The Hokage didn't particularly like the substance but kept it around for the occasional guest and whenever Hinata would drop by when he wasn't home.

Itachi, knowing the boy needed to mull things over for a minute accepted the offer and watched silently for a second before rising and folding the blankets, leaving them in a neat pile along with the pillow on the furthest cushion of the couch.

The soft brewing of the coffee maker filled the dead silence. Naruto stood, back leaning against the kitchen counters, casually sipping some left over tea from yesterday that was now cold. He stole a glance at his guest as he soundlessly sat down in a chair at his small four-person table. Itachi's back was straight as a shaft yet looked as bendable as his noodles currently soaking in boiling water.

The coffee finally made its way into a mug and into the older man's hands in minutes after Naruto's ramen was cooked. Itachi took the beverage with a "thanks" and quietly pondered to himself who had given the blond the pink painted pig pottery. He took a sip and gave a small frown at the bitterness. Just as Naruto all but flopped into the seat in front of him, Itachi smoothly slid the mug away from him.

He heard a mutter of thanks before a series of slurps and clinking of chopsticks on glass. If this was any other time than now, any other situation than theirs, or any other person than Itachi-a smile of amusement was sure to show at the display being put on at the table, yet all he could allow himself to do was to softly stare.

It wasn't long before all the noodles were scarfed down and the soup was drunk up. It seemed as soon as his meal was over a switch of seriousness evaded his usual carefree self.

The Uchiha caught himself fidgeting with the cold cup of coffee he had abandoned a while ago. Untangling his threaded fingers from the handle, he settled on lacing them in front of him on the table in a mannered fashion.

"So…" Naruto took a moment and cleared his throat lightly. "This is a very difficult situation, Itachi-san." It looked as if he wanted to say more, but he left it at that, so Sasuke's brother took it as a sign that it was his turn to speak.

"If it is okay with you, I would like to leave."

"Leave?" Naruto looked up astonished. "Leave Konoha?" he asked for clarification as if he wasn't hearing correctly. A nod was his answer. He furrowed his brows.

"As much as I would not want you to go- I would- but I can't." He looked up, and with the back of his hand, pushed his empty bowl the side of his view. "I could say you escaped, but that would have to be followed up with a dispatch of shinobi that the village can't afford right now. If I didn't follow through with protocol not only would the elders get suspicious but so will others.

"Besides, too many people have seen you: Ino, Tenten, Sai, and not to mention the idiots at the patrol post. Kami knows they've gone and told other shinobi about it by now. I wouldn't be surprised if word has already traveled down here by now."

"I am aware." He gave a short and understanding nod. "I was only making a statement for future inquiry. When time permits, that is what I will want."

The blond sucked his bottom lip in and began to chew in thought.

If his predictions are true, Konoha shinobi will already have caught wind of Uchiha's presence in the village. People will be asking around- more importantly, the interrogation unit. Ino's also a supervisor in one of the main branches of interrogation. It would be hard for Naruto to cover up the man's lack of existence there. Itachi is supposed to be a murder to the village's eyes, a traitor and monster- nothing more. If an increasing amount of people find out he's not in a building block somewhere, questions will arise and that's the last thing Naruto needed on his plate. He needed a plan of some sort- a safe course of action that could save Itachi from persecution and not have civil disobedience as a result.

It seemed as if Itachi's thoughts didn't stray too far from the blond's.

The Hokage's train of thought broke loose when he winced from biting too hard. Running his muscle over his lip, the bitter taste of blood filled his buds.

"If I may?"

"Yeah."

"Place me in the interrogation unit overrun specifically by Morino-san, I'm sure the Yamanaka will acknowledge my presence in the cell block as well as others."

"And word will spread…" Naruto concluded.

"Yes," Itachi affirmed.

"If you're comfortable with it then I will." Naruto gave a self-assuring nod. "That way I can think of an effective plan to get what we both want…"

"Whatever you think is best, Hokage-sama." Naruto's eyes widened slightly at the formal speech. It was unexpected from someone like Itachi, one who used to being rogue was surprisingly able to switch over to being a shinobi from the Leaf. Although, under more guided musings, he decided that the Uchiha never quit being one.

"I have to ask one thing before we depart…" Naruto's words hung. Itachi gave a nod, a gesture telling the blond to continue. He looked up at the Uchiha. "Why not tell Sasuke? Why hurt him over and over again for no reason? You could've... saved him."

The elder mulled the questions over in his mind. He had been prepared to already answer that question. His brain had previously thought out a straight and narrow answer, one that would not offend, one that offered no insight and was perfect, but considering the eyes of his baby brother's best friend made him throw all caution into the wind. He sensed that The Fourth's son would understand.

"Have you ever sworn to yourself you'd keep a promise to someone precious to you?"

He watched as crystal blue hues deepen in a nostalgic understanding as self-hatred and sorrow flitted over his eyes.

"I have."

* * *

The confinement cells were not as awful as Itachi had last remembered. He overheard one of the guards commenting on how he should've been locked up in one of the cells below, then gone on to mumble something about it being the Hokage's fault. He was indeed grateful Naruto didn't ship him down to the underground cells. He knew things that went on down there that he wishes he had the pleasure of not knowing. Uchiha knew it probably wasn't as horrible as it probably would have been a decade ago but- it was appreciated nonetheless.

After he was shoved none so kindly into his room, an ominous lock was heard from the other side of the solid, grey steel door. Then the echoing of sandaled footsteps came from the hall.

He guessed he wasn't getting the chakra infused cuffs off anytime soon. Giving an almost inaudible sigh, the Uchiha sat down and pulled his hands underneath his bottom, then his legs, and then up over his feet.

All of the movement almost drained him of energy.

Every ounce of chakra Itachi could feel himself regenerate was taken away with just as much swiftness as a fox. It's claws bored into his mind, and each second longer was a painful reminder of where he was and why.

He accepted his futile plight, regardless. This was what was needed for everything to follow through as smoothly and efficiently as possible.

Uchiha mulled over various solutions, none of them certainly favorable yet definitely doable and easy to work with except one.

Naruto could do either one of two choices and depending on that, the brunet would determine what course of action the blond was more likely to take.

His Hokage could either follow through with Itachi's wishes, or he could do what he thought was just and right.

Naruto was a kind soul, kind and understanding. The sharingan user, without out a doubt, knew the younger man thought about Danzo, the Hokage, and elder's dealings with the Uchiha with distaste. His desire to still protect and serve his clan was an ever burning fire in the pit of his stomach that would not die so easily, and the older knew the Rokudamie's benevolence would allow Itachi's silent pleas to win him over.

On the other hand, the former jinchuriki's stubbornness was a separate fight on its own, and a fool could only manage to fake ignorance to its omnipotence. He has seen, and heard, of countless instances where Naruto has gotten what he wanted from just sheer willpower alone, and it never ceased to amaze him. Although he knew of the blond well enough to know where his power truly came from.

Naruto worked hard to create the bonds he formed, and if anyone ever tried to stand in the way of them there was a high chance of said male's fist encroaching their face.

Regarding the younger shinobi's track record with his brother, Itachi suddenly found he had a greater risk of Naruto disregarding what Itachi wanted and would do what the Uchiha's, young, naïve heart had always longed but logically accepted deep down inside wasn't what was best, and that terrified him. For what purpose did he stay away from his beloved brother, then? For what purpose had he sacrificed his entire self for?- what of Sasuke?

He got agitated just thinking about the outcome of his bloody secret coming to light.

He took a soothing breath and regrouped.

Naruto would do what was best. They didn't appoint him Hokage for nothing. Just because the man was young didn't mean he was brainless, the Uchiha knew he was far from it.

* * *

Sakura watched for the fourth time as a bundle of mail fell from the single metal slot built into her midnight apartment door labeled in bleak white: 106. She rolled over.

She hadn't even bothered to call in sick to the hospital. It was unprofessional and lazy. Normally, Sakura would care about such mundane efforts, but now she was all but. She figured Naruto would have spoken to the head of her department about her situation after she had promptly slammed her window shut when she spotted a familiar pigeon the hospital used to deliver quick notices. There was a high possibility the hospital had informed the spiky blond, and he probably told them to give her a temporary leave of absence.

Or so she hoped. It was possibly all wishful thinking on her part.

She sighed and rolled over again, not able to find a position suitable to fit her comfort level.

She heard a knock- loud, firm, and short.

She knew who it was. She turned away from the door, hoping if she just ignored it the person on the other side would catch a hint and go away.

Not even a minute later she heard the lock to her door jingle and then open. Bolting up, she glared at the intruder as he dismissed his inked animal.

"I told you to stop doing that," Sakura growled.

"I wouldn't have to if you'd just open the door, silly," Sai replied with a smile. He stepped out of his shoes and squatted in front of the konoichi who was still sprawled on her couch, blanket thrown hazardously over her.

After staring at the same pale, bland face for a while she finally cracked with a tired sigh.

"What do you want, Sai?" She rubbed her eyes and adjusted her sitting position.

"Naruto told me that the Uchiha's dead." Her movements stilled. "And… well, I've read that at times of grief it is best to be sympathetic with a friend and support them, but I've also read 'honestly is the best policy'." He paused. "It was confusing to understand, but I don't feel like lying to you, so I can't say I'm sad that traitor is dead, but my chest feels funny just leaving you up here to cry about it." She looked at the pale artist with something akin to bewilderment. She didn't expect Sai to feel sorry for her; it was unexpected, yet at the same time touching.

Sakura allowed her face to soften as she sat up. Sai took the opportunity to sit next to her, his right leg barely skimming her exposed thigh.

"It's just so sudden…" He looked over to her only to have her hair obscured her face. "I always thought." Her fists tightened on her knees. "Thought that I'd see him again, at least one last time and leave on a good note." Then her voice dropped an octave, "I never told him how I felt- how I _truly_ feel."

Sai thought about her words. He's heard from Naruto and Ino countless of times how their comrade held romantic feelings for the Uchiha, and he never understood why. He had always wanted to ask. Whenever his name was brought up though, he would catch the subtle hints of sorrow, so he tended to avoid the topic. Although… he figured now would be the best time than any other.

"You loved him, did you not?" He heard her sniffle. "I never quite understood what was so appealing about him," he spoke, honestly curious.

The pinkette rubbed her eyes then paused. She's asked herself that question multiple times throughout the years, and she had yet to find a suitable answer herself. There were times when she was awed by his skill and agility, other times it was his deep and raw emotion he always tried to suppress but would break free even when he hadn't noticed. What never ceased her affections was the not-quite-yet-broken look he constantly held in those dark tinted irises. He had suffered- so much more than she thought she ever would, and she thought he was all the more beautiful for it.

"I never could either," she softly replied.

Sai gave a slight frown, and his brows pushed together in utter confusion.

"Isn't it expected for one to know why they feel a certain way?"

Sakura opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again. "Well, Sai." She twisted her torso to face her pale friend. She started again, slowly, "Love is… complicated."

He looked down at her table in deep thought. "I see," he spoke contemplatively, "I hope to never experience this "love" thing then. Sounds stressful." He finished honestly. Sakura leaned forward and couldn't help but immediately put a hand up to her face to hide her burst of chuckles.

The ex-Root member turned his head at the sound of his friend's unexpected laughter. He didn't think he said anything funny.

"Oh, Sai," she exhaled and placed an affectionate hand on his shoulder.

"I don't g-"

"It's okay. You don't have to." She cut in. Her deep grin was replaced with a kind and gentle smile of knowing. At that moment, her stomach let out a small grumble; a warning that if she didn't eat something soon the stomach pains would return. The medic gave a quick glance around the room then to the kitchen where she knew food would not be found. She opened her mouth, but Sai spoke before she could.

"Take out, I presume?"

* * *

Thank you all for reading! We are getting on track and moving things along swimmingly- plot wise anyway.  
Reviews are welcomed and loved!

Til' next time!

~WAC


	7. Chapter 7

What's this?- an update when it's barely been a month?! Haha, yes yes, I felt compelled to get this one out. Things are coming along swimmingly.  
Thank you guys so much for following and reading :) Enjoy

* * *

The two walked at a leisure pace as they headed towards a familiar destination they knew all too well.

Sakura glanced at the nightlife infesting the streets of the city. The occasional child ran past, yelling and laughing; restaurant owners called out to passing civilians, every other time announcing a deal that can't be missed; street musicians eloquently performed, and sometimes a passerby would drop in some left-over change.

Sai and she didn't talk for the entirety of their walk, and she was okay with that. It was times like this where she needed the silence to just collect her thoughts.

Sasuke's sudden death made her at a lost. There was a time where she had made him her world, and that world seemed unbendable and definite- until it wasn't. It took her the hard way to learn not to depend on any one person, but even now that was difficult for her not to do.

Her emerald eyes couldn't help but glance over at her male friend. Here she was depending on someone again. Although, right now, she was too mentally exhausted and too famished to care. The medic had just accepted it, if only temporarily.

Looking up at the dimly lit sky, she could barely see her breath. It was nearing December now. Although Konoha had the warmest and sunniest summers and springs, their winters were the complete opposite. It hardly snowed, but they got their fair share of below freezing temperatures. Their winters did, however pale in comparison to Kirigakure's, especially Yurigakure's.

They were in the autumn season now, so the weather was just starting to chill. The cooler air did her mind good- when compared to how she isolated herself in her stuffy apartment for days.

She hadn't felt this normal in a while, which was ironic given her current conundrum. Sai stopped momentarily a way in front of her to hold the white flap that read 'Ichiraku' open. She gave a polite smile in response, and it suddenly dropped when she noticed familiar company sitting in the chairs in front of her.

"How many times have I told you to stop making those noises while eating!" a shrill voice chided.

"Waht, I'm hunfry." Chouji spoke through his food. Ino scoffed and mumbled under her breath, "You're always hungry."

Shikamaru turned an eye behind him, when he noticed a sudden chill pass through.

"Ah, ohayo Haruno-san, Sai-san." He turned back around and started eating again. Sakura gave a weak smile in return.

The blond's brows pulled together as she heard her teammate speak. "Huh?" Twisting her body around so she could glance behind her, she saw a flash of pink from the corner of her eye and then met eye contact with the artist. Her eyes went past his in an attempt to catch the color of pink again. Her body leaned out of her chair in order to catch another glimpse.

Sakura sat down two seats away from the trio. She really wasn't in the mood to converse with them- especially now.

"Is that Sakura?" She heard Ino speak aloud. Sai had graciously sat on Sakura's left side, shielding her farther from their friends. "Hey! Billboard brow, long time no see!" Sakura almost visibly cringed at how loud and unnecessary the shout was.

Unfortunately for the medic, said friend decided to move to the other side of her.

She sat down with a clamor and noisily placed her bowl in front of her.

"Gosh, it's been forever since I've talked with you." Ino grinned and clasped her hands in front of her face. Sakura ignored her and gave her order to Teuchi after Sai.

"Oi! Forehead," Ino spoke again, snapping her fingers in front of the konoichi.

She looked over towards the blond with a controlled smile.

"Oh, sorry Ino. What did you say?"

Her friend gave an exasperated sigh and folded her arms on top of the table. "It's been so long since I've chatted with you. I've got so much to tell you," she said with a suggestive moving of her brows. A muted noise from the back of Sakura's throat was her response. "Act more excited! I, of course, have all the juicy bits."  
"Ino, nobody cares." Chouji said in between bites.

"Of course, _you_ wouldn't care. You're a guy," she retorted. She turned her attention back to her friend. "You wouldn't believe-"

Sakura couldn't have agreed more with Chouji's statement. She could care less about who was dating who, what recruit or foreigner was the most attractive, or which teams were having the most drama. The slug princess apprentice just wanted to fill up her stomach and be on her way out. She was half tempted to just leave the newly made ramen in front of her and go to a different stall, but she had left her money at home on account of Sai stating that he would be paying.

"-I saw her making out with this guy from downstairs! Then she had the nerve to threaten me if I told Juno, so I put her on interrogation clean up duty for three weeks- serves her right," the blond finished smugly.

"That's not very nice, Ino."

The girl leaned herself over the bar to give Chouji the stink eye. "She shouldn't have threatened me," she retorted.

"Ah," Sai spoke up with confidence," I have read that two wrongs do not make a right. Although, ironically, two negatives do indeed produce a positive." He continued to silently chew his ramen.

"I always knew you were the smart one, Sai." Ino casually winked in his direction, but it went unnoticed on his part.

"What's so bad about interrogation clean up anyway?" The larger shinobi inquired.

"You're kidding me?" Ino rose a sculpted brow.

"People assigned are responsible for cleaning up the messes made in the interrogation chambers." Shikamaru quipped up. "That's why it always smells sterilized, despite the conditions of the prisoners."

The lone blond gave a dramatic shiver as she crossed her arms, appalled. "It's awful," she added, "I had that duty for half a year when I first started. I would always come home smelling like a toxic blend of flesh and disinfectant."

The interrogation unit… Sakura had only visited the building a handful of times, and most of those times weren't spent on the level below. She's heard of various things that go down there, and Sakura was grateful that she did not put herself to be in the position of being down there. She was one for violence but not cruelty- no matter how much someone seemed to deserve it. She thought breaking fingers and splitting skin open was a huge joke from the interrogators. Making medics, such as herself, heal the tortured was unfair. This was the rift that always seemed to follow Sakura around. The konoichi in her knew that this was to be expected, but the sensible side of her, the protective side of her, acknowledged a long time ago that torture was inhumane.

Although, she hadn't felt that kind, motherly side of herself in quite some time- her principles had stilled and remained immobile. Recently, that seemed to be the only thing that she could truly rely on.

"Speaking of the interrogation unit," Ino leaned in for a low whisper, "I'm not sure if you heard already, but when I was out on my last mission," Sai's eyes glanced two, "we intercepted Uchiha Itachi." Sakura tensed. "It was crazy, he barely put up a fight and then passed out. Naruto had him ordered to be placed in the first interrogation level. I say he should've thrown him in the class A section down below." She muttered.

"Ino, did you really have to bring that up over dinner?" Chouji commented.

Sakura's stare remained straight and unmoving. Visions of last week repeated themselves in her head over and over and over and-

"-said that it was suspicious. I mean, we've been looking for the guy for years then he comes to us on a polished silver platter? I see no problem with the situation, but you know my dad. I'm just glad we have him locked up now after all these years."

She just wanted her to shut up. The grasp on the pinkette's chopsticks tightened to a dangerous degree. She could feel a speck of wood on the bridge of creeping under her skin.

"I wonder though, when word comes out that Uchiha is under the confines of Konoha, that Sasuke'll come back? I'm sure Naruto will be expecting that. It's taken him so long just to find his brother let alone kill him; knowing that he's locked up in one place, he'll probably-"

The pressure on her utensils was too great and with a loud noise they snapped.

At the same time, Ino stared at Sakura's clenched fist, startled; Shikamaru was suddenly standing behind the two, a shoulder laid on his blond teammate's shoulder.

"Ino." Shikamaru gave her a firm stare. Her blue eyes looked up at her teammate. There was something unspoken in his eyes. He wasn't saying anything though. She could feel heat emitting from Sakura, and the bland, deadpan face of Sai.

The blond's eyes made her rounds and locked eyes with Sai then Shikamaru, then looked at Sakura's frozen state, then back at the Nara.

"What," she stressed.

She looked at the two men again, frustration edging her towards an irate attitude at their silence. " _What?_ " she tried again to no avail. "Hey," she turned to Sakura, demanding, "what is it you're not telling me?"

She wasn't going to tell her, she couldn't. It would be more encouragement for Ino to tell her to get over her now deceased ex-teammate. Once Ino got started on an idea, it was hard for someone to change her mind. "You need someone better," she says, "someone who appreciates you." She didn't have to say it, but each time, she could read in between the lines: "he'll never love you"- "you won't ever be his number one." Then again, was she number one to anyone?

"Oi, Sakura, I'm talking to you!" Her face was red and right in front if the pinkette's face when she turned her head. Seeing her friend's grave face deflated some of her anger. "What happened?" she questioned calmly. She waited patiently for an answer as Sakura collected her thoughts.

"Nothing," she spoke, grabbing a new pair of utensils, and returned her focus to her noodles, twirling them on her chopsticks.

"Damn it, Sakura!" Ino cursed.

"Ino-" Chouji tried to speak up to calm his friend but she spoke over him.

"You wonder why no one talks to you anymore, and this is the reason! You're so distant and gloomy. You don't tell me anything anymore," she fumed. "For the past two years, everyone has been worried about you. Don't you care how we feel? I know the whole Sasuke thing is difficult for you, it's hard on everyone. We knew him as well. And I'm not going to even attempt to compare your pain to ours, but you need to somehow cope with his defection. He's not the twelve-year-old boy you knew from back then. You need to accept that, because if you don't, you'll fall too deep into this hole you've created for yourself, and I'm not going to be there to see it." Sakura stopped her ministrations.

"You've changed. You're not the kind-hearted, temperamental, pink-haired girl I knew two years ago. Do you know who you're turning into?" she scoffed. Shikamaru saw where Ino was going with this and narrowed his eyes, disapproving.

"Ino," he spoke.

"Sasuke."

"Ino." A different voice stung the Yamanaka's ears. She closed her mouth to stare at her husband with silent words.

She promptly stood up. "I'm supposed to be your friend, right? Friends trust each other. I think you should readjust yourself before the next time we meet." Walking around she grabbed Sai's hand and went for the exit. Sai looked back at his friend's pole like posture. He noticed though, the small enclave of her shoulders.

He halted his steps much to the interrogator's chagrin. She met his eyes and his decision was firm. He wasn't leaving with her. He wasn't going to leave Sakura alone.

Her thoughts were once again proved correct when the artist gently let go of her hand.

She couldn't help the tensing of her jaw and clenching of her fists. The weight of the jewelry on her left hand felt heavier than ever.

A wry, disbelieving huff left her mouth, and in one motion, she pivoted on her heel and swung the flap open, the piece of cloth slowly fluttering to a halt after seconds.

* * *

Trouble in paradise, or is it even really paradise?

Reviews are welcomed; they really pump me up!  
Interaction with Sakura and our dear Itachi will be coming up in the next chapter or two, so stay tuned :)

Until next time,  
~WAC


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